Top 5 Customer Service & CX Articles for Week of September 15, 2025
Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
Up in the Air, Loyalty on the Ground: a Conversation with Ellis Connolly by Hospitality Net
(Hospitality Net) The true loyalty currency is not plastic or points. Loyalty is, instead, measured in attention, presence, memory, and the feeling of being recognized.
My Comment: We kick off this week’s Top Five roundup with an article about loyalty in the hospitality industry. I’m a big proponent that every company in any industry can adopt the hospitality mentality. In this article, Simone Puorto of HospitalityNet interviews Ellis Connolly, Chief Revenue Officer at Laasie, who shares what working and what’s not with loyalty programs.
How the UPS Store Delivers Best-in-Class Retail Customer Experiences by Judy Mottl
(Retail Customer Experience) Sean O’Neal, vice president of retail operations at The UPS Store, outlines customer experience strategy, how automation is playing into CX and reveals how data collection and customer relationship management is enhancing the customer experience.
My Comment: In my annual customer experience research, we ask what brands come to mind when you think of an excellent customer experience. I publish the “Top 25,” and one of those companies is UPS. This article includes an interview with Sean O’Neal, VP of retail operations, who gives us a peek behind the curtain, sharing some of what UPS is doing to take care of its customers. He mentions “a rewarding experience is when someone walks away thinking, ‘Wow, that was easy.’” He also talks about a new word that is being used in the CX world, “phygital,” the intersection between the physical and digital world.
10 Tools and Strategies to Build a Brand Community by Emily Heaslip
(CO) Brand communities are invaluable for growing customer loyalty, and these 10 tools can help you facilitate and moderate these communities.
My Comment: We want customers to be connected to our company/brand beyond the transaction of buying what we sell. One way to achieve this is to create a brand community, a connected group of customers who love and support you. They tell their friends about you and are your most loyal customers. This short article shares some tips on how to do exactly that. Plus, some of the software products that can help.
Rethinking Voice in the Modern CX Stack by Rhys Fisher
(CX Today) For years, the narrative in customer experience has been that digital will displace voice. Messaging apps, web chat, and AI-powered bots were expected to handle the bulk of customer interactions, leaving the phone call as a relic of the past. Think what Netflix did to Blockbuster, Spotify did to CDs, and WhatsApp did to the SMS inbox. But the reality is quite different.
My Comment: For several years, experts and analysts have said that digital customer support (now often fueled by ChatGPT-type programs) will take over live customer support. I’ve been a bit of a contrarian on this one. This article helps make the case that the phone and human-to-human support are not going away fast, if ever. In addition, the article touches on the power of proactive service, which means the company can often inform the customer that they have fixed a problem before the customer ever knew about the problem..
What 20+ Support Leaders Are Learning About AI — And What It Means for You by Hiver
(Hiver) A lot has changed in support in the last few years. With the advancements in AI, we’ve now arrived at a point where companies are able to automate entire workflows and assist customers at the click of a button.
My Comment: Our friends at Hiver shared a compilation of what support leaders and experts in the CX world have to say about AI. I’m honored they included my comments about the topic, which focus on how AI can help hyper-personalize the customer experience. And with 19+ other comments from experts and practitioners, you’re bound to find something you haven’t thought about before.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
Up in the Air, Loyalty on the Ground: a Conversation with Ellis Connolly by Hospitality Net
(Hospitality Net) The true loyalty currency is not plastic or points. Loyalty is, instead, measured in attention, presence, memory, and the feeling of being recognized.
My Comment: We kick off this week’s Top Five roundup with an article about loyalty in the hospitality industry. I’m a big proponent that every company in any industry can adopt the hospitality mentality. In this article, Simone Puorto of HospitalityNet interviews Ellis Connolly, Chief Revenue Officer at Laasie, who shares what working and what’s not with loyalty programs.
How the UPS Store Delivers Best-in-Class Retail Customer Experiences by Judy Mottl
(Retail Customer Experience) Sean O’Neal, vice president of retail operations at The UPS Store, outlines customer experience strategy, how automation is playing into CX and reveals how data collection and customer relationship management is enhancing the customer experience.
My Comment: In my annual customer experience research, we ask what brands come to mind when you think of an excellent customer experience. I publish the “Top 25,” and one of those companies is UPS. This article includes an interview with Sean O’Neal, VP of retail operations, who gives us a peek behind the curtain, sharing some of what UPS is doing to take care of its customers. He mentions “a rewarding experience is when someone walks away thinking, ‘Wow, that was easy.’” He also talks about a new word that is being used in the CX world, “phygital,” the intersection between the physical and digital world.
10 Tools and Strategies to Build a Brand Community by Emily Heaslip
(CO) Brand communities are invaluable for growing customer loyalty, and these 10 tools can help you facilitate and moderate these communities.
My Comment: We want customers to be connected to our company/brand beyond the transaction of buying what we sell. One way to achieve this is to create a brand community, a connected group of customers who love and support you. They tell their friends about you and are your most loyal customers. This short article shares some tips on how to do exactly that. Plus, some of the software products that can help.
Rethinking Voice in the Modern CX Stack by Rhys Fisher
(CX Today) For years, the narrative in customer experience has been that digital will displace voice. Messaging apps, web chat, and AI-powered bots were expected to handle the bulk of customer interactions, leaving the phone call as a relic of the past. Think what Netflix did to Blockbuster, Spotify did to CDs, and WhatsApp did to the SMS inbox. But the reality is quite different.
My Comment: For several years, experts and analysts have said that digital customer support (now often fueled by ChatGPT-type programs) will take over live customer support. I’ve been a bit of a contrarian on this one. This article helps make the case that the phone and human-to-human support are not going away fast, if ever. In addition, the article touches on the power of proactive service, which means the company can often inform the customer that they have fixed a problem before the customer ever knew about the problem..
What 20+ Support Leaders Are Learning About AI — And What It Means for You by Hiver
(Hiver) A lot has changed in support in the last few years. With the advancements in AI, we’ve now arrived at a point where companies are able to automate entire workflows and assist customers at the click of a button.
My Comment: Our friends at Hiver shared a compilation of what support leaders and experts in the CX world have to say about AI. I’m honored they included my comments about the topic, which focus on how AI can help hyper-personalize the customer experience. And with 19+ other comments from experts and practitioners, you’re bound to find something you haven’t thought about before.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
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